Fuel dispensing nozzles used in gas stations are typically connected to hoses by a ferrule fixed to the end of the hose and a fitting which couples the ferrule to the rear end of the nozzle. The fitting is rotatably mounted on the ferrule, has a nut portion that can be grasped by a large wrench to turn the fitting, and has a threaded front end that threads into a hole at the rear of the nozzle. Thieves often drive up to a gas station with a large wrench in hand and unscrew the fittings from the nozzles to steal the nozzles. It may take less than 10 seconds or two to remove each nozzle, and about a minute to remove six nozzles from one island of a gas station. The thieves typically drive off before personnel realize what has happened. Since the cost of modern vapor recovery nozzles is high, it would be desirable to provide a simple, low-cost apparatus for resisting such thefts, but which still allowed personnel at the gas station to easily replace a damaged nozzle.
A straight-forward approach to an anti-theft device is to provide a clamp of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,215 which includes a pair of pivotally-connected halves that can be closed around a coupling and which carry a hasp that can receive an ordinary padlock. However, such device makes the rear of the nozzle, which is often held by customers during dispensing of gasoline, more difficult to hold because of increased bulk and the presence of a protruding hasp and dangling padlock. Also, thieves can carry bolt cutters which can be used to cut a padlock in a few seconds. An anti-theft apparatus which prevented the rapid removal of a gasoline-dispensing nozzle from a hose to discourage theft, but which left a relatively compact and smooth surface at the rear of the dispensing nozzle to avoid interfering with use by customers, and which was of low cost, would be of considerable value.